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PROFILE--Brian Salzberg has finished every Falmouth Road Race (45 in a row)

Brian Salzberg, mid-race

(8-18) Brian Salzberg is one tough runner dude--tough enough to have completed every Falmouth Road Race despite an agonizing list of injuries and surgeries (see below). A neuroscience professor at the University of Philadelphia, Salzberg, 76 next month, has lived in Philadelphia for 43 years.

Please
tell us briefly about your career/profession. I did a Ph.D. in high energy Physics at Harvard, but, as soon as I
finished, I did a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Physiology at Yale Medical School.
(Physiology WAS the next page after Physics, in the Harvard Course Catalogue !
Just kidding.) After four years as a postdoc in the Medical School at Yale, I
found my first, last, and only job at the University of Pennsylvania in 1975,
where I have been Professor of Neuroscience and Physiology for many years. My
career has mainly been in Biophysics, where I study optical phenomena in
mammalian nerve terminals and other neural systems.

When
did you start running and WHY? I began running in
June of 1968, after reading Ken Cooper’s newly published Aerobics. My first run
was a mile around the streets of Cambridge, Massachusetts. I was mainly
motivated by a

family history of coronary artery disease, but didn’t really
begin running seriously until July of 1973. (I ran a total of only 400 miles
between 1968 and 1973.) Partly, I was inspired by Mike Bennett’s having run
marathons, at what I then thought was the advanced age of 42. I was also
cognizant of the fact that two of my senior colleagues had recently succumbed
to heart attacks in their forties. Also, I heard, from Mike, in early August,
that there was to be a bar-to-bar race from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights
(“The Falmouth Marathon” it was called, although it was only only 7 miles.) It
was organized by Tommy Leonard, who still remains involved with it, forty-five
years later.

How
much did you run in your peak years? In my peak years,
the late 1970’s early 1980’s, I would run 60-80 miles per week for around three
months before marathons. One year, I had heard that Bill Rodgers was running
140 miles per week, so I tried that once (two ten mile runs per day, for a
week.) 110 miles, the following week seemed somewhat easy! Overall, I was doing
about 2500 miles per year.

What
were some of your top race performances? I am most
proud of the fact that between ages 35 and 50, I ran 7 marathons, and none of
them were slower than 2:58:19. In 1978, I did the BAA in 2:52, and the race
organizers said that that year, the start was so confused that folks who
started where I did, were probably owed 2.5 minutes. So, I consider that my PR
was 2:49:30. I did a bunch of 2:51’s, 2:52’s, and 2:53’s…and my marathon average
between 1978 and 1992 was 2:53:07 and the average of my five fastest marathons
was 2:51:29. (Ten fastest marathons averaged 2:58:20.) I ran New York City in
1976, 1977, and 1979 in 2:52:55, 2:51:02, and 2:53:00. My best Falmouth Road
Race was 40:40 for 7 miles, and I was running 5 mile races in ~ 5:45’s.

How
much are you running and cross-training now?

Salzberg looks at Tommy Leonard plaque in Falmouth.

Now, I am
recovering from a hamstring surgery, but, before that, I was running 15-20
miles per week, quite slowly.

If
you still race, please provide a recent race result or two. 26:57 for 5K, and 2:08 for ½ marathon in the past two years, but I did a
3:40 marathon (Philly) when I was 65.

What
training routine currently works best for you? I have largely been following Jeff Galloway’s prescription for Run/Walk;
it’s easier to get the distances that way, but I have become very slow. I still
hope to get back under 28:00 for 5K, with more mileage….

What
was your average training pace in your prime on an “easy day.” What is it now
on an easy day?6:30-7:30 minutes per mile. (My best marathon was run at 6:28 per mile.)
Now, I run around 10:00 – 11:00….

Does
it bother you that you are slower now? How do you deal with this? Yes, it does bother me! I cannot run a 400 m at my old marathon pace!
But, at nearly 76, I am quite happy to be running at all.

How
much did you weigh in your prime? Now? Probably ~ 165 lbs
in my prime; now, my weight fluctuates between 172 and 182 lbs.

What
kind of diet have you followed through the years? Has it changed as you got
older? I have always been an omnivore; still am. Beer
remains a big part of my diet, as it is said to be Nature’s most nearly perfect
food!

Do
you attempt to maintain the weight of your younger years? How? I try to keep my weight below 178; mainly by exercising and watching my
intake (a bit.) I really am not able to get down to 165, although I do nearly
get there post-surgery and post long treks.

Do
your currently take any vitamins, minerals, or supplements that you believe
contribute to your running and fitness? I take a
multi-vitamin, and a statin, but I don’t

Salzberg and another Falmouth icon.

think they contribute much to my
running and fitness, although the statin (Crestor) does seem to keep my LDL
Cholesterol very low. I think that the running keeps my HDL Cholesterol high.

What
injuries or other health issues have you faced through the years? How have you
dealt with these? I have been besieged by a relatively
large number of injuries during my 50 years of running. There have been nine
surgeries, including three craniotomies (for benign brain tumors), two back
surgeries, and knee, hip, and hamstring operations. I have been extremely
lucky, however, since none of these injuries has prevented my return to running,
or caused me to break my string of 45 successive Falmouth Road Races. Yup, I’ve
finished ALL of the Falmouth Road Races, and probably hold the crutch record
for the course in 2008! (I also walked the course, under the cut-off time, in
2010, after my last two brain surgeries in June and July of that year.)

What
cross-training, including strength training, do you do? How does it help you
continue to run? I work with a trainer once per week,
doing upper body strengthening exercises, and balance training. I think that
these help keep me somewhat flexible, and mentally fit for running.

Do
you stretch? Why or why not? I really don’t
stretch at all, neither before nor after runs. Probably, I should, but I am too
lazy.

Why
do you keep running? I am still competitive, and I like to
beat my (aging) friends. Running also seems to keep me healthy, or, at least,
alive. It also relieves any tensions I might encounter during the day, and it
sometimes clears my head to think about research related problems.

Do
you consider yourself a social runner or a mostly solitary runner? What are your thoughts on each? I used to be more of a social runner, but
now, I largely run alone. This is more from necessity than choice; It’s hard to
find runners as slow as me! I would actually prefer to run with others….

What
is your philosophy of life, running, and aging? My philosophy is to enjoy life to the fullest, and to do no harm, to
people or to the environment that we all share.

What
principles do you follow to maintain your lifetime running habit? I used to try to run every day, but, when I became acquainted with Ron
Hill’s streak, I gave up! I still try to run as often as possible, barring
injury.

What
are the biggest lessons (life lessons and running lessons) you have
learned from running? Long ago, I learned that
running, especially competitive running, is more fair than most other things in
life. One really gets out of running, largely what one puts in. The clock shows
no prejudices, and no favoritism.

How
does running & fitness help you on a daily/weekly basis? It keeps me (largely) sane.

It
has been said that “aging is not for the faint of heart.” How do you maintain
your motivation and optimism? As long as I am
still running, I am still alive! Always remember that every run is a new
personal age-group record! You have never been this old before.

Please
provide a favorite inspirational quote or two … if you have them. I’ve always liked the quotation from the great miler, Noureddine Morceli
(although it doesn’t apply to me!):“Before a race, I always worry….who will be second, who will be third?”

And, from Tommy Leonard: “If this be heaven, I am
going to be a good boy.”

Walt Whitman:

“On a flat road runs the well train’d runner,

He is lean and sinewy with muscular legs,

He is thinly clothed, he leans forward as he runs,

With lightly closed fists and arms partially raised”

Finally, the famous line from Steve Prefontaine:

“To give anything less than your best is to
sacrifice the gift.”

Post-Script, Aug. 19, 2018: Salzberg finished his 46th straight Falmouth in 1:33--23 minutes faster than the next member of the Falmouth Five who have completed all Falmouth Road Races. "Weather was spectacular, with temps in the high 60s and completely overcast," he reported. "I ran/walked, nice and easy."